Llots of Llove

But You, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. Psalm 86:15

Hi Friends!
Valentine's Day is approaching. But to be honest, my husband and I don't really celebrate it. I feel like it's a "made up" commercial holiday focused on getting people to spend money on each other. And I don't need a holiday to tell meI need to show others I love them. Now, I know many people enjoy this holiday, and that's great. It's just not for me. LOL.

God doesn't need a holiday to show us His love either. After all, He IS Love. His love never ends. And, He loves us more than we can imagine. I sometimes take that for granted. I mean, all my life, I've known God loves me. I've known that because of that love, Jesus came and died for me. But, man, when I think about the enormity of that, it's really hard to comprehend. Jesus, the Creator of all, chose to leave His throne, His glory and come to His creation. Not in a palace, not as a King, but as a baby in a manger. The Creator became the created. Can you imagine? Not only did He become a Man, but He willingly went to the cross. He gave His life and took on our sins so that we could be reconciled to the Father. That is amazing love. He loves us more than we can know.

And because He loves us, we should love others. The world is full of hurting people. And hurting people hurt people. I try to remember that when someone treats me badly. Because remembering that helps me not to react badly myself. As a follower of Christ, I am called to love. I'm called to love not only the "easy" people, but "hard" people too. That's something I have to work on. It doesn't come naturally. But I have the power of the Holy Spirit and through Him, I can love more like Jesus. I found a bracelet to help me remember to love. It has "HWLF" on it. It's the answer to WWJD- What Would Jesus Do? He Would Love First. This little visual reminder helps me to love every day, not just on a holiday.

Page details: I used the following Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets: Happy Alpha and Llama Love. I also used watercolor crayons and a white pen.

Thanks for taking the time to read the blog. Have a blessed week! Andrea

No Prob-Llama

Hey hey! I hope you all are enjoying all the birthday sales and festivities! This week we have 11% off all creative worship stamps and digital printables with code HAPPY11CWDP click HERE to go shop the sales. I am bringing you all a fun festive page in honor of our 11th birthday...

I used the Llama love set and sunshine girl alpha to stamp the imagery. I had lots of fun adding little details to the llamas, like hats, and blankets. These stamps are so fun and really allow you to run wild with your creativity. After stamping I simply used my watercolors to fill in and add color but colored pencils could work as well to give your llamas that festive touch.

Proverbs 12:25 "Anxiety in a mans heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad."

Don't worry about anything! Nothing is too big or insignificant for our Father. Pour out your heart and thank Him in advance for answering and fulfilling  your needs. Lift the burden of worry off your back and place it in our Father's hands. There is no prob-llama too big for Him!

Thanks for stopping by! I hope to see you in the near future, I will be doing some Facebook lives on the Sweet n Sassy stamps facebook page today at 3pm central and on November 26th. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and on my personal page to stay up to date!

Love and prayers
Jenn @creativegurl85

LLama Tell You How Much...

Hey Guys!

Excited about this entry today!  The August release is so much fun, and I'm enjoying the different ways the team's been putting this Llama set together!  So many ideas, and so much inspiration!

 Today I'm in Psalm 103, journaling over the magnitude of God's love for the whole world! 

There's no placing limitations on God when it comes to His love for you.  Pretty simple! 

The inspired writers tried their best to detail this, attempting vernacular that would make sense to their readers.  I can't understand infinity, can you?  I can't understand limitless, uninhibited, matchless or unsearchable grace.  I can only fathom what this love is… in it's totality, it is God's.  God is limitless, uninhibited, matchless and unsearchable. 
 

Here in the Psalms we read,
"For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us.  As a father shows compassion on His children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear Him.  For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust."  (vv. 11-14)

I used "Chunky Lower Case Alpha," "Llama Love,"
& "Texture Tile 1" Stamp Sets

WOW!  Do you see what I'm saying?  I just can't begin to put labels on a unit I don't understand.  I can understand "radius."  I can understand, "miles," "inches," or "kilometers."  I can even understand negative temps, depths, and other such measurements, but I cannot even… I just can't!  His love is too great; His compassion is too much!

I used Distress Ink Oxides to achieve the background.

This brings me to that sweet, softened area of "pasture" that I read and hear about so often.  The mild, smooth, and peaceful place the good Lord brings His sheep (or Llamas, as it were ;) ).  A settled place.  A nestling place.  A place of calm, collected, and protected. 

God loves me so much.  He loves YOU so much.  His unbounded heart is like that of a Father, holding His beloved children (as llama-ish as they may be), using His compassion to see us as we are. 

Fickle. 

Feeble. 

Finicky. 

Unsteady. 

Unfaithful. 

Unsure. 

So here we are; loved beyond all reason, and the biggest way that God EVER showed His absolute and perfect love is on the cross.  The cross of Christ, His beloved Son. 

Simple colored pencil shading for the mountain & llamas stamps.

Someone who offers Himself, weakens Himself, humbles Himself on our behalf, is one who truly loves indeed.  No one - NO ONE - can deny this amazing love. 

"Llama tell you how much God loves you…"  Well, at least let me try.

He loves you perfectly.

He loves you without limits.

He loves you for your sake.

He loves you for His name.

He loves you yesterday, today, and forever.

He loves you beyond measure.

He loves you far above your thoughts, words, and actions.

He loves you as a treasure, though we are dust.

He loves you as a child, though we are wayward.

He loves you so, so much.

Much love,

Deeds

Llama Llama Red Pajama...

Lamentations 3:25-26

"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,

to the one who seeks him;

it is good to wait quietly

for the salvation of the Lord."

Anyone struggle with patience??.... I know I do! With two little ones running around it is very often that I have to do my best to check my attitude and calm down. If you have young children, or even teenagers, I'm sure you know this feeling well too. On top of struggling myself, its hard to teach a child patience. Goodness gracious my 5 year old has ZERO patience most days, and her lake of patience with me results in draining my patience! Haha. But as Christians, we learn in so many different places in the bible where patience is really a very important trait to possess. It's definitely not an easy one to acquire sometimes, but it's a trait that you can really benefit from in certain situations. 

We can learn so much from those in the bible that displayed such faith in the Lord and were extremely patient! Our timing is not always God's timing, and we NEED to learn to be patient. One of the books I love to read with my kids is Llama Llama Red Pajama. Most parents are probably familiar with the book, but it's about a little llama getting ready for bed and he calls for his mama but she doesn't come right away, and the little llama starts to get impatient and yelling for his mama. 

My favorite page from the book is when the mom comes back to the little llamas room and says, "Baby llama what a tizzy, sometimes Mama's very busy! Please stop all this llama drama and be patient for your mama!" I have seen myself in that situation COUNTLESS times with my kids. When we get to that part of the book, we talk about how important it is to learn patience. I love when you can teach a child something from a book. But even as I try to teach my young children patience, I also give myself the reminder that we ALL really need to practice patience each day. Some days more than others, haha. 

xoxo,

Stephanie Gammon

Llama Love 

Sunshine Girl Alpha

Teeny Alpha 

Chunky Lowercase Alpha

Classy Script Alpha

HIGHER GROUND | Hymnal Art Journaling with Julie

"The Sovereign Lord is my strength!  He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights." (Habakkuk 3:19 NLT)

Meet Larry and Lulu.  Lulu is the llama lying down, and Larry is the one standing up.  These are the two llamas in the "Llama Love" stamp set, part of the August Release.  This set is great for card making, scrapbooking, and yes, even faith art journaling.  Here I am journaling with Lulu and Larry in my hymnal the song "Higher Ground," a traditional hymn published in 1892.  

"Llama" just say, I'm a major clutz!  (Ok, I just had to add that pun 😁)  Seriously, I am clumsy, and I have been all my life.  I have broken both of my feet twice, simply from stupid falls and trips, and at least three different toes, from walking into tables or chairs, etc.  Surefooted I am not!  I would love to hike and climb mountains, but even walking on a sidewalk is dangerous for me.  Therefore, I love to read Habakkuk 3:19, where it talks about how God makes my feet sure as the deer, and enables me to tread upon my high places.  

This promise for me means that God is my support, my strength, my guide, my security.  Just like the sturdy llama, with its surefooted ability to scale the Andes Mountains, God empowers me to accomplish His great tasks for Him! The more I walk in His way and follow His path, seeking and surrendering to Him daily, I continue to scale greater and greater heights through and for Him.  By faith, He plants my feet on higher and higher ground, until I've reached that highest "tableland" named Heaven!  Incidentally, we sang this hymn at church this past weekend, which gave me the idea for journaling this page.  Afterwards, my son asked me what a "tableland" was.  It's a high plateau.  Heaven is the highest of plateaus, where we will spend eternity with God.  

For this page, I stamped and masked Larry and Lulu with the mountains. I show how to mask in the video linked below. I then painted each little scene with Dots and Dust watercolors. Wanting to keep some of the text visible, I masked those off with washi tape, and then created the background using Distress Oxide Inks in Wilted Violet and Broken China.  I stamped my title with the new Chunky Lowercase Alpha set and one of my favorite alphas, Mini Grunge Type.  My white Signo Uniball gel pen was perfect for adding detailing to the broad letters.  There are two border stamps in the Llama Love set, so I used one to box out the text.  Next, I added texture with the stones stamp from Texture Tiles 2.  Finally, I wrote Hab. 3:19 in an empty spot, and added a tab, washi tape and bow to complete the page.  

I've been amazed at the ways I've been able to use these llamas in my Bible and faith art.  If you missed the Facebook Live release where I showcased this set, you can still catch it here.  You will have to request to join the group if you aren't already a member, but don't worry, it's a fun place to hang out!  In this live video, I share some additional ideas of ways to use the llama set in your Bible journaling, and I created a page for Matthew 11:29.  I also invite you to follow my Instagram account where you can see my other pages and projects I create with this set.

LLAMA LOVE

CHUNKY LOWERCASE ALPHA

MINI GRUNGE TYPE ALPHA

TEXTURE TILES 2

Deliver

You know how those familiar things can evoke such calm and peace? My memories of growing up in a precious family are so sweet. Yes, I realize now more than ever how fortunate I was to grow up in a great family. Items from my childhood bring back certain pleasant memories.  

Daddy was in the Air Force, so he traveled all over and we had many keepsakes from different countries. We had woven ponchos from Panama, ceramic elephants from Thailand, and a big stuffed llama from Peru. When I see these things from my childhood, they bring such sweet peace and comfort to my heart.

Unfortunately for us, too, was the fact that Daddy’s travel also subjected his body to some horrible things as well. My dad served in Korea and Vietnam. And, as many of you know, Daddy suffered in his last days from lung cancer.

On one very dark night, I was called up to come sit with Daddy because his mind was out of control and he was hallucinating. No medicine or interventions they tried were working. When I got there, I found my dad sitting in a wheelchair...dressed in only a diaper and a T-shirt...and he was screaming out uncontrollably.

My heart was broken. My daddy...the strongest man I had ever known...was sitting there in a most pitiful state. My dad never raised his voice, was filled with a quiet reserve, and was very private. I. Was. Broken.

As I approached Daddy he called out “Gayle, we have to get out of here. The Viet Cong is attacking. Don’t you hear the air raid sirens?”
What was actually happening was that people’s IV’s were beeping and the nursing home staff were talking to each other over the loud speaker.  

But Daddy’s mind was so attacked by the side effects of cancer, that he was flashing back to all the air raids from his days in Vietnam. I had been praying on my my drive all the way over that God would give me directions on how to help my Daddy. 

I pulled Daddy over beside me and held his hand and began to talk to him. Me being there helped, but he was still so upset and saying we had to take cover...they were going to kill us.

In my purse, I had my Bible. I grabbed it out and began to read to Daddy. We started in Psalm 91 because that was his favorite.

“Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭91:1-3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“He will protect you from every deadly disease!” Yes! As I was reading, I was praying “God protect my Daddy from the ravages of this disease. Deliver him from the grips of this terror.”

“He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection. Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭91:4-6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

God was the protection for my Daddy. Daddy did not have to fear the terrors of the night. We didn’t have to fear this dreadful disease.

As I was reading, a calm began to come over Daddy. He body began to limber and the tension began to ease.

“If you make the Lord your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your home. For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go.”
‭‭Psalm 91:9-11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’m sure it was God’s angels that were protecting Daddy’s mind at that point.

“The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭91:14-15‬ ‭NLT‬‬

There is no doubt in my mind that God rescued Daddy that night. As I continued reading from the Word, it wasn’t long until Daddy was fast asleep and we were able to get him back in bed. I slept peacefully the rest of the night in the recliner beside him. We both woke up refreshed...and protected...and rescued in the Lord.

My friends...God’s Word is always the answer to it all.  Just like the sun will always rise in the morning, His mercies will always be new.  Lean in to Him.  

_________________
Art behind the story:

When I saw the Llama Love set, they brought such sweet memories of the stuffed llama we had from my childhood. I knew they had to go in my Bible with the story of deliverance from the Lord.

I stamped the mountains several times, and then watercolored and fussy cut them. The same is true for the llamas, the blankets and the cactus. I watercolored the background and then stamped the words using the Chunky Lowercase Alpha. I used Derwent Inktense pencils to shadow the letters. After gluing the fussy cut pieces on the page, I added more watercolor for highlights and then completed the page with the mountain clip.

There are several great new releases for August on the Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps website. If you use of them on social media, please tag me. I’d love to see what you do with them.

Until next time,
GayleIG: patioponderings